


three blessings for three lives

by Silverine



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Allura (Voltron) Lives, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Background Relationships, Competition, Klance Secret Santa 2020, Lotor (Voltron) Lives, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Post-War, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-14 21:29:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28677438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverine/pseuds/Silverine
Summary: Goodwill Ambassador Lance McClain is invited to a very singular event this time: the alignment of three planets above the beautiful land of Lirinem, which occurs every thirty decaphoebs, attracts many people due to its magical properties and the interesting competition organized by the gentleLirii. However, Lance may have forgotten to ask for more details about it, too worried wondering if his long-time friend and eternal crush, Blade of Marmora Leader Keith Kogane, would attend too.But when he does and both are suddenly forced to participate together in a soul-binding ritual... what could possibly happen?For @Fullmetal_Heart, for the KL Secret Santa exchange 2020.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron), Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 28
Kudos: 171
Collections: Klance Secret Santa





	three blessings for three lives

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Long time no klance~ This is my gift for my dear friend [Dolly](https://twitter.com/Fullmetal_Heart), who I love a lot! She asked for post-canon, soulmates, mutual pining, and some side pairings I love, so expect side Lotura, Ezor/Zethrid, and Shiro/Fiancé of your choice. And although I'm not sure this really counts as a soulmate AU, I hope it's enjoyable nonetheless!  
> 

Staring through his transport’s window at the gorgeous crystal palace that is his final destination, Lance must admit, once again, that this whole Coalition’s Goodwill Ambassador gig has more perks than its pompous name initially suggested.

Stretching his elegant blue sleeves while appreciating the beautiful scenery, he’s a bit ashamed to recall how reluctant he was to take the job when it was first offered to him. Fresh from the war, still young, and humbled by the devastation witnessed, at the time he was feeling so low he thought that Allura was just giving him something to do to keep him occupied, almost as if throwing a juicy bone to a particularly lazy dog. 

His exhausted brain had even suggested that maybe she wasn’t doing it because she really _trusted_ him, but only because she didn’t want one of the paladins ruining their spectacular and overachieving workflow as a group. 

Not his brightest moment, indeed. But, luckily, he still had the good sense— and adequate peer pressure— to accept the offer in the end. 

And now, after a few years of hard work, he can proudly say that he was the right person for the job, that Allura chose him because she knew this fact, and that he is quite happy with his current life.

The transport moves swiftly among many others on the dusty road, and Lance squints to see if he can distinguish the delegations just by looking at the models and colors of their ships. He’s eagerly searching for one in specific, looking for black and purple vehicles, but he only spots the menacing chariot of a Galra ambassador he particularly dislikes, and he scrunches his nose.

Of course, not everything would be rose-colored. The job entails dealing with unpleasant people like that all the time, plus a lot of learning and studying too. And, unlike before, he can’t afford to be messy, considering his dual role: as a human, he must always secure a good image for Earth in a conglomerate of civilizations and cultures way more advanced and complex; then as a former Voltron paladin, he must also stand for all decisions made by the Great Coalition— even the unpopular ones.

For example, no one would’ve guessed that one day he’d be the one defending Lotor— _Lotor_ , of all people!— in a hearing in front of the new Galra Council, but alas, there was Ambassador Lance McClain, using his silver tongue to appease an entire room full of tall, furry, and very aggrieved politicians.

Defending the guy you fished from a quintessence rift and then snatched away your old crush would be kinda sad if he wasn’t over it already, but he can’t say he regrets it— in part because, through the years, the man has grown a _teeny tiny itty bitty_ on him... but mostly because he’s saving that triumph card for when Allura tries to send him again to meet those _keki’ru_ guys who hate his guts yet always insist on inviting him.

It’s not the first time Lance has been blacklisted by an entire race by accident and it probably won't be the last, but c’mon! He wasn’t trying to be improper on purpose. Who would’ve imagined something as innocent as winking was all kinds of disrespectful towards _keki’ru_ mothers? They have so many eyes, what’s with all the fuss over closing _one_?

…So, anyways. The point is, there are many uncomfortable moments and obnoxious people to deal with in this line of work, making it very challenging and exhausting. However...

In the end, it’s all about the perks.

Lance gives up on spotting the transport he’s looking for from his limited range of view and only sits back more comfortably with a soft sigh and a smile. He looks around the small yet elegant cabin, then at his Altean advisor who is appointed to escort him wherever he goes, and once again feels grateful in his heart.

Of the aforementioned perks, this is undoubtedly one. Being treated so well wherever he goes keeps his carefully trimmed ego at optimal levels, and although he’s constantly on the move, he’s also always comfortable enough to not miss home too much. Then, when he goes back, it’s with a feeling of fulfillment that he’d hardly get otherwise. 

That in itself is priceless, but not even the best part. If anyone asked, he’d say his favorite part is that he gets to see his friends way more often than he would if he stayed put on Earth. 

Of course, being Allura’s right-hand man— rather, left-hand man as Coran always _kindly_ reminds him— he meets her in New Altea or wherever they need to go every few days. Lady Allura may have abolished the royalty system among her people, but a crown that’s not physical cannot be destroyed, and everyone knows she still wears hers pretty damn well, despite her humility. 

As the founder and leader of the Great Coalition, Allura may be the busiest of them all, yet she always finds time to sit with Lance and chat about stuff outside complex politics— from dealing with her troublesome and not-very-popular consort, to simply tearing apart the latest meetings they've attended together, be it the food or the manners of the guests. After all, as Lance’s twin sister always says, ‘ _friends who are petty together stay together’_ , and that seems to be a universal truth _._

He’s always hanging out with Shiro too. The IGF Atlas hosts many of the meetings Lance needs to attend, and although Admiral Shirogane isn’t a diplomat himself, his name commands respect beyond their system and all through the galaxy, which makes Lance’s job easier— even if he messes up, at least humanity will always have that one exemplary individual to show off to the rest of the universe.

If only Admiral Shirogane wasn’t so into flying, commanding his ship, and wooing his soon-to-be husband, Allura would probably pester him more often to join them and therefore overwork Lance significantly less. But since everyone agrees that Shiro deserves a break, they avoid bothering him with such mundane things— Lance only pesters him to squeeze himself in his peace-making missions sometimes, if only to get the occasional and very much needed adrenaline rush.

Hunk and Pidge, on the other hand, manage to remain a constant in Lance’s life. Hunk is a superior mind in his friend’s opinion; an engineer and tycoon master who inadvertently has built a more efficient exchange with other cultures than Lance will ever build with his meetings and speeches, through his gourmet and technology empires. His support in every crucial discussion goes under the radar most of the time, but Lance knows: the Coalition owes Paladin Hunk its current peace almost as much as they owe it to Voltron. 

Same with Pidge, the youngest subdirector of the Science Division in the history of the Galaxy Garrison, who is also the most prolific they’ve ever had, and the one responsible for making Earth’s military force a player in the bigger scheme of things. A planet where people still wondered about the existence of intelligent life beyond its system only ten years ago gets to not be entirely embarrassed in front of their allies thanks to one small woman and her galaxy-sized mind, something that Lance knows will go down in history, as it should.

Indeed, meeting often with his amazing friends and feeling an active part of their collective effort to keep the peace in the galaxy is definitely one of Lance’s favorite things from his current job.

But then, on a more… _personal_ level, there’s also one last and very important perk.

The transport stops and Abelas, the Altean escorting him, swiftly stands up to open the door and exit first, checking the safety of their surroundings as usual. But Lance is too impatient, so he just steps outside and inhales the sweet smell of Lirinem’s southern hemisphere evening under Abelas’ reproving gaze. 

The place is gorgeous: the orange and pink twilight paints everything in warm hues, roads of fine golden dust lead to forests of dense foliage in the distance, full of lively colors, and the impressive crystal palace they’ll enter soon stands majestically in the middle of it all. 

The translucent walls of the tall palace create a complex structure leading up to what looks like a spherical gazer at the top, supported by tens of cylindrical crystal towers. The way the entire building reflects the last of the sun’s light in the hundreds of waterfalls flowing from its creases creates the illusion of ambers falling from it, a vision worthy of any fairytale.

Lance is ecstatic. He loves visiting pretty places, but just as he is about to look up to admire the true reason for this celebration—the conjunction of three neighboring planets in line, marking a very special event for _Lirii_ people— suddenly, a head full of unruly black hair emerges from a transport not too far away, distracting him completely. His heart leaps in his chest immediately, confirming once again an already proven fact.

The third and most important perk of this ambassador job is simple: it has allowed Lance to reconnect with his younger self, the one who enrolled into the Galaxy Garrison full of dreams and gladly followed some shaggy guy into space for only a promise of adventure, before he got crushed by the cruelty of war. And in this reunion with himself, Lance McClain has also unburied, dusted off, and accepted two truths about his own heart.

One, that he is eternally and irrevocably in love with the stars, and keeping him away from them would definitely cause him to wither away.

And two, that he is absurdly and embarrassingly in love with Keith Kogane, and staying away from him is something that he could definitely not bear.

Under the soft sunset light, Keith’s head turns left and right, almost as if searching for someone, and maybe due to his annoyingly good sight, he spots Lance staring at him right away. He blinks twice before a subtle smile draws on his face, and he jumps out of his dark vehicle, lithe and elegant despite his considerable height. He’s wearing a new black suit, padded at the shoulders in the Blade of Marmora usual style. His hair is not tied up today, creating a mortal combo with the scar on his face, giving him a wild air, devastatingly handsome.

Lance’s wits are scattered all over the place, and he tries to get them together as he smiles out of reflex— another thing he picked from this diplomacy job.

Right, so, this is _absolutely confidential_ , but Goodwill Ambassador Lance McClain is hopelessly pining over fellow ex-paladin, Blade of Marmora Leader, Almost-Galra-Emperor Keith Kogane, and he simply Doesn’t Know How To Let Him Know.

Someone foolish enough may argue with him that the best way to do so is just by telling him exactly that, which is silly. Complete tomfoolery. If they knew about their shared history, they would realize just how dumb is that suggestion. 

Is Lance expected to explain that years of annoying made-up competition, constant bickering, and tiresome provocations were a product of a very badly developed same-sex crush? That after years of simmering and pondering, those feelings finally managed to break the shell and he came to the sudden realization that what he considered a sempiternal wish to punch Keith right in the face was actually just him wanting to punch his lips… with his own lips?!

Hahaha, he’d rather go live with the _keki’ru_ than do that!

But that’s the plain truth. After a decade of knowing him, from his cadet years to the current times, Lance realized he has held a candle for this boy— now an offensively handsome man— from the very beginning. There were ups and downs, many distractions, and a lot of confusion, but that little flame managed to survive an entire decade of clownery on his part. 

And in the diffuse lines of the relationship they worked so hard to polish into a deep friendship, Lance is simply not brave enough to test if he has a chance, _any_ chance at all, of getting his feelings through Keith’s generous heart.

So, at least for now, he’s content with just meeting him when they coincide in these parties, trying to leave a good impression of himself—to prove he’s _changed_ , that he’s mature and reliable too—, even though Keith’s chaotic job makes it hard sometimes. He’s a busy man, after all, always running here and there, carrying relief provisions, solving dangerous conflicts, and basically being a mix between a venerable saint and an idol to the entire goddamn galaxy.

But considering all this, Lance shouldn’t complain. In fact, he faintly realizes that despite the Blade’s tight schedule and renowned dislike for massive events, this one marks the eighth time they have met in a party just this year. 

Keith has personally attended a few meetings Lance didn’t expect him to, and has also gone to some parties where he has greeted people stiffly only to slip away as soon as he sees a chance— when Lance asked, he said it was to get some funding for new projects and such. Lance wondered if avoiding everyone besides him would help with that mission at all, but hey, it’s not like he lamented it!

About today’s party, Lance wasn’t sure if Keith would come, since it’s supposed to be a purely recreational event. Because of that, days prior he assumed they wouldn’t meet and didn’t pay much attention; Allura went to personally send him off without giving him much detail either, and only when he was about to depart she casually mentioned that people from the Blade of Marmora may go, and to please greet them in her stead if they did. 

With the ship’s engines already roaring, as soon as Lance heard this he _had_ to run back to change the simple attire he had chosen for the occasion giving some piss-poor excuse about the jacket being too warm or something. And he may be wrong, but he's almost sure that Allura rolled her eyes and smirked just as she turned around to leave the hangar.

Well, call him vain, but now he’s very glad he did that! Feeling a flame burning in his stomach, he takes a deep breath and starts walking confidently in Keith’s direction, followed by Abelas. He notices there’s a lot of people here already, and more ships and vehicles are landing all around them. 

“Hey, Abelas, why is this stellar conjunction so popular?” he asks his advisor, just realizing that he wasn’t given the normal debriefing he has to endure before every mission.

Somehow, Abelas looks even grumpier than usual, which is a bit alarming. He even seems reluctant to speak, choosing his words slowly with his thin lips pressed.

“The information was quite outdated, but it may be due to a popular competition that is hosted only when this astronomical event unfolds,” he answers, at last, walking with Lance between the parked transports. “It happens every thirty decaphoebs or so, explaining the high interest.”

“Oooh, a competition? You think I can win if I join?” asks Lance, doing finger guns at him, mostly because he knows the Altean hates that gesture with a passion. 

Abelas’ face, defying its own record, turns even grumpier.

“That would make it worth the effort, I suppose,” he mumbles, rolling his eyes.

“Eh? What do you mean?” asks Lance, but before his advisor can say anything else, Keith has already come to meet him and he immediately forgets what they were talking about.

“Hey, Lance,” says Keith, extending a gloved hand that Lance shakes with a smirk, pulling him into a tight hug.

He may be playing the conformist role like a loser, but he _won’t_ be robbed of the only acceptable physical contact he can get from Keith, who seems startled at first but then relaxes in his hold, patting his back.

“Hey, Samurai! How is it going? What a pleasant surprise to meet you here!” says Lance, letting him go and trying to school his tone into not sounding overly fond.

“Yeah, I… guess,” answers Keith in a vague way. He stiffly bows his head towards Abelas as a way of greeting, before adding, “I’m good. How are you?”

“Great! Taking a break from all these talks about fuel deals with those guys who look like Slav’s cousins… remember those?”

“Ah, yeah. I remember they were giving you a headache the last time too,” answers Keith with a casual smile. At this, Lance tries —and fails— to tame the butterflies in his stomach.

“What’s up with that face? Do you like it when I get bullied?” he asks playfully, elbowing his friend. To his surprise, the Blade seems to choke, coughing, and looking away. Before Lance can even frown, though, two distinct giggles divert his attention from Keith to his escorts: this time the ones accompanying him are Zethrid and Ezor, and not Acxa nor his loyal Kosmo as it’s usual.

“Oh, hey there,” says Lance, “How are you doing, ladies?”

“Great! And it’s also great to see you here, by the way,” answers Ezor, and for some reason they laugh again, this time louder.

“Uh… thanks? I mean, same, I guess,” says Lance, asking Keith with his eyes what may be going on with his chaotic companions. However, Keith seems suddenly very interested in the line of guests walking towards the main gates of the _Lirii_ crystal palace.

“There’s a lot of people here,” he says in a tone that suggests he isn’t pleased about it. 

“Right? I wonder if it's about that contest they’re holding,” says Lance. Then, looking up, he gasps and points at the sky, “Oh! The conjunction is almost there!”

In the sky, three planets are close to aligning in a perfect row. The scenery up there is as gorgeous as in land; the sky half blue, half orange is already dotted with countless bright stars, and the planets of this system are extremely close to each other, to the point their asteroid belts and colorful rings can be appreciated in clear view from their position. 

Lance feels his chest swelling with happiness. He turns his eyes towards Keith, and his purple eyes reflecting the scene fit perfectly into this small sample of the universe’s beauty. Keith soon stares back at him, and when their eyes meet he smiles kindly, in the exact way Cadet Lance once longed to see but thought impossible.

See? How could he risk losing these tiny bits of casual affection he has managed to claim after so long? Who in their right mind would?

Pushing these thoughts back to the dark corner they inhabit, Lance encourages the party to walk to the entrance of the palace with him greeting people here and there, and noticing the general excitement is quickly getting to him too. 

Before he can ask Abelas again about the nature of the event, loud voices welcoming them drown his own. Tiny _Lirii_ people, with their dark bodies draped in exquisite gauzes and their gorgeous veil-like hair floating behind them, are distributing one bracelet to every creature that crosses the open gates— regardless of how many arms some of the guests have. 

“Welcome! Please, hurry inside in an orderly manner. The _Sarii_ will start soon… Please, in an orderly manner!” 

Lance adjusts the translation device in his ear that’s started cracking a bit with so many different voices around him, then handles his invitation and allows the little _Lirii_ by his side to close with a crisp click a transparent bracelet, finely crafted, around his right wrist. 

“Welcome! Please come inside!” says the tiny creature, and Lance steps into the building expecting to find a luxurious entrance hall, but instead, he finds himself in a huge circular room with crystal walls that give it the appearance of a huge freezer. Maybe because of that, even though he’s quite warm, he shivers involuntarily. 

Looking around, he realizes they must be at the base of the middle structure. The walls and the edges of the floor have deep carvings and reliefs, while a few elegant columns hold the ceiling, which has a huge circular hole that allows a direct view of the spherical structure on the top of the palace, and right above it, of the planets that are about to align. This architectural choice must serve some astronomical purpose, no doubt, however… isn’t the place kinda empty for such a massive event?

Lance has been in the northern hemisphere of Lirinem before, and the _Lirii_ seemed like his favorite kind of guys at the time: fun, welcoming, and maybe a bit too extravagant in their lavish attentions, so it’s a bit shocking to find that this gorgeous structure of them looks so bleak inside. He lifts the arm with the bracelet he has just been provided with: it looks pretty much like the walls, as if it was made of ice despite being warm to the touch; gorgeous, but very simple.

He turns around to ask for his companions’ opinions, but to his surprise, he only finds Abelas by his side.

“Where’s Keith?” asks Lance, looking around. There are so many groups of people and he notices that the ones who don’t look confused like him seem to be scattering around on purpose, laughing nervously.

“Probably on the other end of the room. His comrades seemed excited to join the _Sarii_ ,” answers the Altean, crossing his arms and looking around too, indifferent. Lance raises an eyebrow.

“Okay, spill. You clearly know more about this than me, what the heck is going on?” he asks, amused by the chaos but pissed off that he got separated from Keith so fast.

Abelas lets out a long, suffering exhale.

“From what I know, the _Sarii_ is a competition to reach the top of the palace before the ‘Sacred Triad’ aligns in the sky,” he explains. “It’s a famous ritual of _Li_ _rii_ people, dating to millennia ago. It is said it was the way the _Lirii_ guaranteed the successful union of northern and southern hemispheres through the joining of their two Warrior Queens, and thus ended the _Tirantiiba_ Wars, to finally achieve the notable Six Hundred—”

“Alright, alright, skip the history lesson, let’s get right to the point,” interrupts Lance, earning a scowl from Abelas. “C’mon, wasn’t this supposed to be a party? What does Allura expect from me coming here, exactly? You two have been awfully quiet about it for… well, being you two.”

Abelas closes his eyes as if everything around him was simply too unsightly for his fair green eyes. “For each _Sarii_ summoning, the _Liri_ _i_ send invitations to many important personalities at the time, in hopes that a great alliance will be formed thanks to the mystic influence of the _Sariike_ Palace. The invitation itself is the first test: due to their belief that everything is predestined, no matter how you get it, as long as you have it you’ll be welcome. Then it is said this place comes to life under the influence of the Sacred Triad, tying the souls of those destined for greatness together and granting their peaceful union for life. Lady Allura and Lord Lotor each received an invitation, of course… but then they gave them away.”

“What? You mean I’m here in Allura’s place, then?” asks Lance, stunned.

“Not exactly. Lady Allura instructed me to communicate to you that… ahem, fate works in mysterious ways,” Abelas seems pained by these cheesy lines, coughing before mumbling, “and also that she is, and I quote, ‘done with the adoring puppy eyes, so please take this chance to do something about them or don’t bother coming back’.”

“W-What?!” yells Lance, but this slip in the protocol isn’t noticed when loud whistles startle everyone, and another _Lirii_ climbs a platform in a side of the circular room as the doors close heavily behind them.

Unlike the cute assistants from before, this tiny _Lirii_ is dressed in plain white gauzes and looks very old, yet their eyes shine brightly with enthusiasm. In a solemn voice, augmented through their technology, they announce:

“Welcome, most respected guests! We are happy to have you here for this cycle’s _Sarii._ As the Sacred Triad smiles above us once again, we may rejoice in this reunion and heed their call. Among us are those who have been driven to this time and place to confirm their predestined bond: this _Sariike_ Palace, built from the tears of the First _Sarii_ Brides and carrying their will, shall guide you with care. Just be sure to listen to them holding no darkness in your heart. Their decision is final: do not try to bend fate in your favor, or to another's disadvantage. If the tears of the Brides touch you and your bracelet melts, you shall return to this hall at once.”

An ominous silence follows the _Lirii_ ’s heavy words. However, they don’t seem to notice it at all; opening their arms, they happily announce next, “We’ll hold a bountiful banquet afterward, worthy of our guests! Please look forward to it!”

Most people look at each other in confusion, but the old _Lirii_ host is busy checking an instrument they point at the circular hole in the ceiling, measuring the planets about to align.

“It’s almost time… Please be ready! Best of luck!”

“Wait, wait, wait, are we participating already?! What does it mean 'best of luck'?” says Lance, grabbing Abelas by the arms and shaking him like a very disjointed ragdoll.

“It means look alive, sir, it’s starting,” answers Abelas, pointing up.

From the walls, from the stairs, from everywhere around the huge circular room, thin cascades of glowy water start falling and drenching the unaware guests who scream and run around the place trying to avoid them. The flow of water has no real pattern, stopping here, starting there, vertically, horizontally, almost as if someone was picking one by one the people that should be attacked and driven away.

Lance can’t believe what he’s seeing, but making use of his soldier instincts and very aware that he’s wearing his favorite suit, he avoids the merciless water jets while searching frantically around the room. 

What the hell is going on?! All he wanted to do was to eat, have a good drink, and talk to Keith, for _quiznak’s_ sake! In fact, he even came with a specific and kinda embarrassing personal mission in case they met... He wanted to invite him to be his plus one for Shiro’s upcoming wedding! 

Of course, Keith needs no one else to invite him, but Lance was gonna try anyway in what he judged like a brilliant plan to learn if he was taking someone without asking him directly. That way, as soon as Keith started looking at him funny, he could easily pass it for a joke. And in the improbable case Keith actually _agreed_ … well, depending on his panic level, again, he could easily pass it for a joke. See? Win-win. Brilliant stuff.

But how the _quiznak_ is he supposed to do that now, with water blasting at them from every wall?!

After a few minutes of this craziness, the waterfalls finally stop and Lance, sweeping back his hair covered in droplets, realizes that the disposition of the entire room has changed: due to the palace’s architecture, the water has flowed to the walls, where it has filled the carvings that turned out to be a wide circular pool that surrounds the entire room, and in the middle of it, the only cascade that still falls has formed a thin wall that separates the hall into two halves, each mirroring the other with stairs that lead to the upper floors.

Through the crystalline wall Lance finally spots Keith: he’s with Zethrid on the other side and apparently intact, to no one’s surprise. 

As he sighs in relief, a hand on Lance’s shoulder startles him. He looks up and finds Ezor, grinning widely by his side.

“Yey, we did it!” she says, shaking her bracelet in celebration.

“What did we—?” Lance starts saying, but once again he’s interrupted by the old _Lirii_ ’s augmented voice.

“Ah, the Brides are generous this time, so many people! Rejoice! Rejoice!” they exclaim, almost jumping up and down. “Perfect! We’ll give the respected guests a few ticks to decide if they wish to proceed. Those who wish to form a link with a partner may proceed to the upper floors; those who don’t, please jump into the pool and join those without bracelets in our eager wait to enjoy the Sacred Triad’s reunion!”

“What partners? What link? What the _quiznak_ is going on?!” yells Lance, completely lost. Abelas, calmly rearranging his robes, answers with unconcealed irritation.

“It means that those who passed the initial selection may find a partner to try and reach the top. As I explained before, you pick someone and if you pass the _Sarii_ Brides’ test, you can reach the zenith and be blessed by the Sacred Triad with a bond that’s meant to achieve greatness, or so says the legend. Everyone is here for that reason,” he says in a tone that suggests he couldn’t care less.

Lance’s heart, however, gives two excited beats before quickly deflating. Looking at the other side of the waterfall, he lets out a low growl.

“Well… This sucks,” he mumbles, bitter that he’s separated from Keith by that stupid water wall. However, Ezor slaps his back.

“What are you saying! We got this far, we’re doing great! Are you really giving up? All this effort for nothing?” she says, waving at Keith and Zethrid, who wave back in the distance.

“But we’re on opposite sides, what’s the point?” says Lance, and Ezor and Abelas cross dumbfounded looks.

“Not very brilliant, are we?” asks Ezor.

“Hey!” says Lance, frowning when Abelas just crosses his arms and doesn’t defend him at all.

“Dummy, we are _supposed_ to be on opposite sides! You can only pick a partner from the other group. That’s why we scattered, a lil’ trick to raise the chances, see?” explains Ezor, very satisfied with herself.

Lance's jaw slacks, and he throws a look around. He just notices: the big majority of these people seem to have come in pairs, and the ones left on the same side or the ones who lost their partners to the water jets are jumping dejectedly into the circular pool or laughing in defeat. The few who are alone seem to be checking if someone of their interest is standing on the other side— only then, it clicks on Lance’s brain.

Although no one asked for his consent and it could be said he has been _vile and shamelessly_ tricked into this, he’s already playing, and so is Keith. The rest of the event is unknown to him but, apparently, reaching the top with a partner from the other side of the water wall will get you tied to them through some alien mumbo jumbo caused by the palace and the planets above.

His mind starts making quick calculations. Knowing Keith, he wouldn’t participate voluntarily in such a ridiculous thing. However, if he quits, what’s Lance supposed to do? He’d rather die than risk getting tied to someone else, but if he says “if you don’t participate I quit too!”, isn't it a bit too obvious?! 

And, on the other hand, if Keith actually decided to join, if it was only avoiding the water blasts, wouldn’t that give him and his top-notch ninja abilities a high chance of winning? But if he won together with someone else, then...

Lance throws a fierce look around and notices that a few people already recognized Keith and are excitedly whispering among themselves. Immediately, his blood boils— no matter if this thing turns out to be just some phony ritual in the end, Lance _won’t_ stand around watching Keith be bonded to someone else when he’s right there. He is quite confident in his own skills too, so... the only solution is clear.

He turns towards Abelas.

“What’s on the top? What do you have to do to win?” he asks.

“No idea, sir. I’m not interested in it, and Lady Allura didn’t provide any more information either. But it should be nothing too risky, that much I know,” says Abelas.

“You aren’t playing? Getting an invitation is so hard, how did you do it, Mr. Advisor?” asks Ezor, tilting her head with genuine curiosity.

“Lord Coran gave me his. Said he was entrusting me this task today since his old bones aren’t fit for it,” he says.

“And which task is that, exactly?” grumbles Lance.

“... Babysitting, which I suppose I can consider done,” answers the Altean.

Lance is about to reach for Abelas to shake him again, but his advisor gives five agile steps back and drops into the pool with a _plip_ and a face that clearly states that the rest of this nonsense is way above his pay grade. His bracelet disintegrates at once.

“Good luck, sir. Please remember Lady Allura’s words and choose wisely. I’ll gladly report your success,” is the last thing he says before heading to the section of the room where non-participants are drying up, and if Lance didn’t know Abelas _never_ jokes, he’d think he was mocking him with that tiny smirk when he turned around.

However, the meaning of those words suddenly becomes clear. Apparently, Lance’s feelings aren’t as confidential as he thought— it may have something to do with the fact he’s always asking Allura if Keith is attending the meetings, or maybe that she noticed how fast he runs whenever there’s news about the Blade of Marmora, or just how much he enjoys talking for hours about his face and his stupid hair even after so many years...

Uhm, anyways. Even if he’s expected to do something, what do these Alteans consider ‘success’, exactly? 

Lance turns around. He looks at Keith, who is listening to Zethrid whispering something in his ear and nodding before rising his eyes towards Lance, who stiffens. Just then, his translation device rattles in his ear.

“Lance? Can you hear me?” says Keith’s voice and Lance slaps his face. Of course, how could he forget? Team Voltron members still have their private comms connected to all their devices!

“Yeah, Cap! Loud and clear!” answers Lance, walking a few steps away from Ezor while still looking at Keith, who also gives a few steps forward, away from Zethrid. Lance clears his throat and lowers his voice. “So… did you know what was all this about before coming? Because I sure didn’t!”

“You didn’t?” asks Keith, surprised.

“Wait, _you_ did? And you still came?” asks Lance, equally stunned.

“No, I mean— I didn’t know any details, either. I don’t know what’s ahead,” Keith hurries to say, but Lance’s mind is already doing some dangerous somersaults. With ice-cold eyes, he glares at the people sharing his side of the waterfall.

“Did you have someone in mind already to participate, or…?” 

“No!” says Keith so loud that Lance scrunches his face and covers his ear. Ashamed, Keith clears his throat and lowers his tone. “Sorry. No, I didn’t. I just came because someone gave me his invitation, that’s all.”

“Who?”

“Shiro,” answers Keith. Although he can’t see him clearly from their current distance, Lance has the weird feeling that he may be blushing. “He said it would be inappropriate for him to come, so he gave it to me. Said it’d be a waste to lose it.”

“Ah, I see! Well, he’s getting married, so that makes sense, haha,” lies Lance, because it actually doesn’t make that much sense, but he is so nervous he can’t stop to think why. He’s currently too worried feeling ashamed of himself, as an adult man with an important title who’s acting like a teenager trying to invite his sweetheart to prom.

An awkward silence extends on the line for a few seconds, until he musters enough courage to speak again.

“So… What are you planning to do? Are you quitting?” asks Lance. He hears Keith clear his throat again.

“I don’t know,” he answers.

“Ah, for real?” says Lance, a bit worried. But then he understands. “Oh, right, since Shiro gave you the invitation, it would be kinda— Yeah, I get it.”

“...Right,” says Keith, crossing his arms and looking away.

“Well, I’ve got Allura’s invitation, so same. But then again, joining with someone you don’t know is a bit… uhm…”

“Awkward. Yeah,” agrees Keith.

“Exactly. So, then…” Lance feels his mouth dry. This is getting beyond absurd, and he refuses to let it continue this way. “How about we, uh— we join together? Like, I mean, no need to reach the top, but we could see who resists longer, how about it? A little competition, you know, for old times’ sake... Besides, after so long I sure miss the thrill of having to fight my way through sentient buildings, don’t you?”

Once he starts it’s hard to stop, so Lance forces himself to shut up and even scrunches his face waiting to be rejected. Behind him, he hears Ezor burst into laughter for some reason. He pays her no mind though— not when Keith, who has never said no to a challenge, laughs softly in his ear and says: 

“Alright, I’m in.”

Electricity seems to run all the way down his spine at this. Lance clenches his fist, resisting the impulse of cheering out loud.

“For real?” he asks, just to make sure he didn’t hear wrong.

“For real. As long as you don’t drag me down, that is,” says Keith, and Lance feels like a whole gallon of gas has been thrown into his already burning heart.

“Ohhh ho ho, now you’re ON! Well then, Mullet, let’s see how far can we get before you give up, how about it? Try to not make me lose too soon, though, it'll kill the mood,” says Lance, feeling a rush of hot juvenile blood running through his veins. He’s aware that this may be a step back for his efforts to appear mature in front of Keith, but he can’t help it— it’s like a Pavlovian reflex, answering to provocation this way.

And Keith isn’t making it any easier either, teasing him back as if he was fully aware of the effect his words have on him.

“Same to you. Just make sure to keep up if you can, Ambassador McClain.”

“Underestimating me, huh! How cocky, Leader Kogane...”

Just then, the elder _Lirii_ speaks again, announcing that the event is resuming.

“The moment has arrived! There’s not much time left until the Sacred Triad is reunited, and the forge is set for those who wish to follow the Brides’ steps! Their loving union brought millennia of peace for our race, and it generously blesses others to this very day. Follow their guide, and you shall progress!” The venerable _Lirii_ shows a warm smile. “Have all pairs found each other?” 

Keith and Lance cross a glance and a smirk from their respective sides as the group of contestants agree all over the room.

“Perfect! Then, please come forward and seal the deal with your partner. Join hands under the waterfall to let them tie you as one— and remember, shall one of you lose their bracelet, you must return to this hall and not try to push forward, our Ladies can be quite temperamental with those who disobey their will!”

Swallowing, Lance walks to the waterfall with the others, peeking around to see what the rest does. Most contestants doubt for a moment before sinking their hands trying to reach the other side, where they are welcomed by their partners. When he looks ahead, Keith is already standing in front of him, his frame slightly distorted by the constant flow of sparkly water, but his handsome features clear against the glowy reflections bathing his face. 

Lance has trouble taking his eyes off him, and for a fleeting moment, he allows himself to believe that Keith’s intense eyes on him suffer the same problem. But then the Blade blinks slowly and, with the tiniest smile, extends one hand towards him under the water current. 

Concealing his sudden goosebumps, Lance reaches out and takes the hand that has been offered. Unsure if it should be just a normal handshake, he twists his hand just so, and his fingers end up holding Keith’s palm softly, almost endearingly. They stare at each other as the two accessories emit a faint purplish glow in acknowledgment, before going back to their normal ice-like appearance. They let go of each other at once.

“Very well, then! Please proceed up the stairs. The way is always up, but there’s not only one way to follow. And please remember, no act that intends to harm another will be tolerated by our Ladies. Good luck, and may the Sacred Triad shine brightly upon you!”

The people who aren't participating cheer on the ones who do, and with a glance Lance notices that, despite what the old _Lirii_ said about the Brides being generous this year, only a fourth or so of the people who arrived at the palace are still playing. With a smirk, he lets the flames of competition burn inside him as he takes off his blue jacket and ties it around his waist, leaving him only in his Altean-style shirt, freeing his naked arms. Then, adjusting the metallic wristbands he always wears on his left wrist, he follows Ezor and the others up the stairway in the corner.

It’s a long way up, consisting of a transparent corridor and two more sets of stairs before they finally reach another open space, and this time they can’t help but gasp in astonishment.

If the entrance hall was huge, this room must be twice its size for sure: many stories tall and made of the same icy material, it's crossed and surrounded by platforms and stairs leading to different sides of the building. Right in the middle of the floor and the ceiling, two open circles allow this and the lower level to have a clear view of that strange spherical contraption on the top, and the planets’ alignment beyond it. Seemingly, the entire palace has been designed around it.

Lance swallows as he looks around the place, following close behind Ezor. Somehow, this silent space gives awfully ominous vibes, but he calms down a bit when he sees the other group of participants pouring inside with identical surprise through another entrance. 

Among them, Zethrid towers over everyone; still, Lance’s eyes always find Keith first, his black hair and sturdy frame unmistakable. Instinctively, he tries to loosen the collar of his jacket before he remembers he already took it off a few minutes ago, and the pressure on his throat is due to... _other_ reasons. 

Feeling very dumb, Lance follows Ezor as she calls out to their partners enthusiastically. When they reach them, she all but climbs over Zethrid who spreads her arms to receive her, meanwhile Lance and Keith just stand next to each other a bit awkwardly, trying to ignore them. 

Despite that, when Lance looks at Keith he realizes he really feels less anxious knowing that, whatever happens and regardless of the result, they’ll be together through it. Remembering they are supposed to be competing against each other too, he even manages to give the Blade a cocky smile.

“Well, then. Here we are at last. Are you ready?” he asks.

“I am,” assures Keith, mirroring his smirk. However, his eyes swept around the room suspiciously. “But this place doesn’t feel right. Keep your eyes open.”

 _“No need to tell me twice,”_ is what Lance intended to say, but before he can even open his mouth, a duet of thunderous voices echoes all through the huge hall, scaring everyone. Lance’s translator cracks like mad in his ear while doing its job, as the voices recite:

**_“Three times we prayed to the stars. In war, peace. The world was burning, but together we had wings. My enemy, my ally, my best friend: show me the true colors of your heart.”_ **

The echoes disappear as abruptly as they started. Like everyone else, Lance looks around trying to find the source of the voices, but they seem to come from the building itself, and from nowhere at the same time. Too late, he wishes he actually paid attention to Abelas’ lesson about the _Sarii_ Brides, if only to see if that was them trying to pass some important message they may be missing.

He crosses a glance with Keith; in his partner’s face, a deep frown draws a crease between his eyebrows, as his purple eyes move away to scan their surroundings with caution. When he sees that classical expression, a warm sense of familiarity envelops Lance’s heart, making him smile against his will.

Vaguely, he feels he understands a bit what the chant said. Keith and he have been through so many things together as rivals, as teammates, and then as friends. Well, they even had _wings_ once, too!

The deep connection they achieved as Voltron’s wings is something so special he can hardly imagine something that even compares; mind and heart perfectly aligned, joined in one will— Being like that, he felt thoroughly seen and yet so powerful, as if they were meant to be this relentless force together and nothing could ever stop them as long as they stayed that way.

He misses that feeling. It is, in fact, one of the things that hurt the most when the Lions left. Sometimes, Lance wonders if it’s the same for Keith, if he also misses the recomforting warmth of that indescribable sensation when he recalls it, the certainty of that unbreakable link...

However, his fleeting thoughts evaporate when things get suddenly a _little_ _bit_ too literal. 

A bunch of clicking sounds and startled yelps fill the room when everyone’s bracelets get abruptly stuck to their partners’ as if attracted by an irresistible magnet. Some struggle to get free, to no avail. And, since everyone is wearing them on their right side, the positions of the pairs are extremely awkward. Lance and Keith end up glued side by side; one facing forward, one facing backward.

They turn their faces to look at each other, shoulders bumping and their noses very close. Lance tries to instinctively step back but Keith, looking down, pulls him towards his chest, where Lance crashes with an ‘oof’. A water jet coming from the ground flies past him, almost brushing his feet. 

Hundreds of similar blasts rise from the ground to drench the unaware people; it soon becomes clear that this time, the palace intends to play a reversed and very wicked form of whack-a-mole with them.

With only enough time to breathe in and out once, Lance can’t even rejoice in the comfortable embrace he has landed in; as if dancing the most cursed tango, he and Keith stay close to avoid the vicious water coming from the floor the best they can while trying to not dislocate each other’s arm.

“This is crazy! We need to get out of here!” yells Lance after a minute of it.

“But where?” yells back Keith.

Another couple bumps into them, almost making them trip. This time, it’s Lance’s moment to pull Keith closer, using the chance to speak into his ear.

“They said the way is up, right? Then up we go!”

If his eyes aren’t tricking him, those ears are actually a bit pink, maybe due to the exercise— still, Lance feels a rush of adrenaline at the thought of flustering Keith, even if by accident. Getting bolder, he looks up and around, and decides to try the stairs in a corner; patting Keith’s arm twice, he points in that direction and starts running.

They almost trip again because Lance forgot that if he leads, Keith will be forced to walk backwards due to their bracelets. Either that or try to run for their lives while embracing each other Titanic style.

Which is tempting, but entirely impractical, to his disappointment.

… Or is it?

To avoid the fall, Keith swiftly turns around twisting his arm and enveloping Lance with it, their right hands joined against his stomach. Keith’s left hand lands on Lance’s waist, making him jolt.

“Oh, crap, sorry,” says Lance, trying to scramble away, but Keith keeps him firm in his hold.

“No, it’s fine,” says Keith, apparently unbothered by their position. “I think this is what we’re supposed to do. Look.” 

Staring around, Lance’s eyes quickly detect that the water jets actually have a pattern this time. Most people, taken by surprise and too busy trying to avoid the attacks or screaming, haven’t stopped long enough to notice it, but now that he has seen it, Lance understands it may not be that hard to cross after all.

The problem is, the diameter between each jet is too small for two people to walk comfortably side by side. Which means… they'll have to compress as close as possible to advance.

“You lead, I’ll tell you if you need to stop,” says Keith, and as if to make a statement, he tightens his hold around Lance's belly.

“A-are you sure?” asks Lance, now getting flustered in turn. Keith’s hands seem to burn through his clothes. “Ahem, shouldn’t you lead instead, in that case? Don’t worry, I’ll make an exception and be sure to follow you this time, no complaints!”

“No, it has to be this way,” says Keith. He shakes his head, trying to get his humid hair out of his face, and almost as if he was hiding a smile, he adds, “Wouldn't want the 'mullet' to get on the way.”

The mullet is not a mullet but a fully grown mane since years ago, and Keith's tone suggests he _may_ be getting back at him for the old nickname, but a valid point has been made anyway. Against such cold and solid logic, how is Lance supposed to complain? He takes a deep breath and tries to focus on his surroundings instead of his own crazy heartbeats.

“Told you to get rid of that crime against fashion years ago,” he grumbles without a hint of truth behind those words, and pinching Keith’s right hand with his left, he signals him to jump forward.

It’s much harder than they thought to coordinate their steps, but as they pick up the rhythm, Lance starts feeling giddy and excited. In many ways, this event is more than what he signed for, but feeling Keith's sturdy chest against his back and his voice next to his ear, at least it could be said he's really profiting from it. Too bad the sample only lasts for a strictly limited time, though.

So, uh, would it be too obvious if he stalled for a bit before reaching the stairs they are heading to?

Screams from other couples are less frequent now. Lance realizes other people have also noticed the patterns and are doing similar things; in the distance, he sees Zethrid carrying Ezor koala style and doing everything by herself while Ezor cheers for her loudly, glued to her body. They are already climbing their first set of stairs, apparently looking for any working door on that platform. 

Maybe because of them, as soon as they reach that level, the water blasts below get even more vicious, as if the palace wanted nothing but to eliminate anyone who didn’t pick up the pace.

“We have to hurry,” says Keith, who also notices the change.

No more time for lollygagging, then— With a resigned pout, Lance goes full competitor mode and, with a lot of effort, they finally reach a corner of the room where they loosen their hold a bit to climb up the stairs. They find themselves in a sort of balcony, and at the end of it, a big arch has been carved into the wall. 

Lance looks back and Keith nods. He lets go of Lance but, still tied by the bracelets, he has to walk almost sideways next to him until they reach the arch to study it closer. There are no hinges but it still looks like a door: the arch is beautifully carved in a curved angle that, as if emulating the palace itself, ends with an empty crystal sphere half-buried on the top. 

There's nothing else, and the pair look at each other with raised eyebrows. 

“So… dead end?” asks Lance. 

As if answering to his voice, ten thin bricks of the same crystal material protrude from the wall, and under them, ten thin jets of colored water start running up, crashing against the delicate bricks as if those were there to stop them from getting to the top. Each thread of water is dyed in a very distinct and glowy color.

Lance suddenly feels eighteen again, playing some crazy RPG in his room at the castle.

“You gotta be kidding me,” he says because there are no hints at all about what they’re supposed to do. Relying on his veteran gamer instincts, he tries to push one of the bricks with a finger, and it moves forward like a button.

“I guess we gotta pick a color and let it reach the ball on top?” concludes Lance. However, Keith raises his head and looks behind them.

“Damn it,” he grunts.

A rumbling sound starts from the side of the balcony they just came from. A line of water jets blasting from the ground is approaching their way slowly, like an evil and very ridiculous timer.

“You gotta be kidding me!” repeats Lance, already done with this stupid palace. “We don’t even know which color to pick!”

“Then choose any!” says Keith.

“Why me?!” 

"Because you’re using your dominant hand!” answers Keith as if that made any sense. He goes back to the position they had when they were climbing up, standing behind Lance as if to shield him from this new menace.

“Crap, crap, crap,” Lance doesn’t argue anymore, looking at the colors with wild eyes while hearing the water coming closer to them. He lets out a resigned growl. “Whatever! What’s your favorite color?!”

“Mine?” asks Keith, dumbfounded.

“Yeah, hurry up!”

“Blue,” answers Keith, and Lance has to stop his finger from going directly to push the red brick. 

“Blue?” repeats Lance, perplexed, but Keith only gives his waist a squeeze to rush him, which works like a charm. Decidedly, Lance pushes the brick over the blue water jet: immediately, it blasts up until it reaches the crystal sphere that starts filling with it. Lance taps his heel on the floor anxiously, but then… the sphere only fills halfway and the blue water stops running. 

“What the—!”

Keith turns his head back to look at the ‘timer’.

“Just pick another one!” he says, and Lance, without even thinking, chooses his own favorite.

The stream hits the sphere and it starts filling with red water. Mixed with the blue one, it quickly turns into a lovely shade of purple.

“Hurry up, hurry up, hurry up…!” Lance cries out, and when the sphere is filled, the arch finally rumbles and splits into two to let them through. Lance turns his head back to see the water blasts that are almost catching up to them, but Keith pushes him forward and they cross the threshold.

As soon as they cross, their bracelets crack and separate; with the force of the push and the sudden release, both men trip and fall with startled yelps. 

Groaning, Lance opens his eyes to find Keith over him, pushing himself up and staring down while breathing raggedly.

He looks adequately disheveled for the situation, and Lance’s brain almost purrs at the view... But the fall also shakes something in there because, frowning, he remembers another detail.

“Wait… You cheater! I just remembered, you’re ambidextrous!” he exclaims, hitting Keith’s chest with the back of his hand.

Keith laughs breathlessly, standing up and extending a hand towards Lance to help him up.

“Yeah, you're right,” he admits with a toothy grin that, of course, melts Lance’s indignant frown immediately. He sighs, accepting the helping hand and standing up.

“You know what, I won’t even argue with you anymore,” he says, shaking off his clothes that are irremediably wrinkled. Then, in the lowest voice possible, he mumbles to himself, “Only because that’s very sexy of you, sir.”

Although Lance is pretty sure he said it low enough, the way Keith suddenly turns his back on him is startling. He looks at him with alarm, but the Blade just sweeps the place with his eyes and then turns back to Lance without any change in his expression. Lance relaxes, letting out the breath he didn't realize he was holding.

“More stairs. Should we keep going?” asks Keith. 

Just then, Lance notices they are standing in a long corridor ending in a spiral staircase that looks beautiful, but like a real pain to climb. Clearly, these _Sarii_ Brides didn’t consider the health and safety of elderly participants at all. 

“Yeah, let’s go. What could possibly go wrong?” says Lance sarcastically, tapping the tip of his boots before walking ahead next to Keith, who smiles in response.

“Don’t jinx it. It could always be worse.”

“They already ruined my favorite suit. It doesn't get any worse than that.”

Keith breathes out a laugh.

The staircase is, indeed, a real pain in the ass. It takes them more than a few minutes of light jogging to reach the top, and by then Lance is almost blinded by the repetitive white of the steps and the closed walls that didn’t allow them to see anything else. His legs have also started a silent protest against the dull ache burning his thighs and his shins.

But of course, Lord Keith and his Ever Strong Ninja Legs don’t seem particularly affected, so Lance tries to distract himself from the pain by bluffing.

“Well! At least following the Atlas crew’s training regime really paid off in the end! Don’t tell Shiro I said that, though, he'll be unbearable.”

Keith laughs and they start walking on this new corridor that looks very similar to the previous one, only that it's curved, not letting them see its end. Lance considers conveniently spraining his ankle and asking to be carried bridal style if there’s another spiral staircase ahead.

“I didn’t think you were still training,” comments Keith after a while.

“Why of course! I may be an ambassador, but I can't just sit around looking devastatingly handsome all day, can I?” jokes Lance lightheartedly.

“And why not?” asks Keith.

“Well, a man has to do what a man has to do! Besides—” There’s an abrupt record scratch sound in Lance’s brain. He even stops walking and turns to Keith with a suspicious expression. “Wait. Does that mean you think I’m devastatingly handsome?” 

Instead of joking back, Keith crosses his arms and presses his lips. Once again, his cheeks and ears turn an adorable shade of pink, and this time Lance can confirm he isn’t imagining it. And also, that it's contagious.

It’s so childish of them— two grown men, well-known and respected across the galaxy— to fall into these silly back and forths only to end up flustered and speechless. It has happened before and it's happening again now, something that could be easily rebutted and then forgotten turning into this awkward silence instead. Isn’t it a bit… weird?

It may be just his own wishful thinking, but Lance feels the vibe around them has shifted into something different this time.

Feeling absurdly hopeful, he notices that subtle change in the way Keith looks at him as if deciding on something. The way he presses his lips, staring at him with intense eyes before he opens his mouth to answer. Lance can feel his pulse running wild, not sure why...

But then the floor opens up under Keith’s feet with a violent clank... And suddenly, there’s no Keith on sight anymore.

“Wha— KEITH!!”

Lance falls to his knees watching the hole in the floor, and before he can decide if he should follow him down the passage, it closes with the same brutal speed it opened, not leaving a single trace behind. Desperate, Lance hits and slaps it in vain, scrambling to stand up.

He’s turning around wondering what to do when the comm rattles in his ear and he taps the device in anguish.

“Ugh, Lance?” says Keith’s voice, as if he was struggling to stand up.

“Keith! Where are you, what happened?” asks Lance standing in place, afraid of triggering another trap.

“I’m okay, that thing now was just a slide. I landed somewhere near you, I think, the fall was too short,” he answers.

“Are you in another open space?” asks Lance, tapping the floor with his foot to test it.

“I think so, I hear water running. But I can't tell for sure, it’s pitch dark in here. My light isn’t working either,” answers Keith.

“Really? Damn… Alright, don’t move, wait for me!” says Lance, moving again.

He frowns, testing the floor carefully and walking slowly. He proceeds through the corridor that way until, soon, he sees the border of another carved arch on the wall. Without thinking too much, Lance touches it. At the contact, the door opens without any trick. He steps through it, only to find himself in yet another baffling room.

It’s not an open space this time. It is, in fact, a very enclosed space that extends upwards to the top of the palace, oppressive and strange. 

The structure is a transparent cylinder of eight or ten meters of diameter at most that, like the rest of the palace, has waterfalls falling gently down its inner walls, forming a ring of water around the base and leaving just a circle on the ground to stand on. Around this cylinder, much like an emergency ladder, another glass structure serpents around it all the way up as if embracing the building. 

From afar it must look like a discolored barbershop pole, Lance thinks. Keith is standing inside said pole, meanwhile he has just entered the outer structure, and the door he came through merges into the wall as soon as he crosses it, trapping him inside.

“I found you!” announces Lance, relieved. “Look up behind you, I’m right above you!”

Although Keith raises his head and turns his way, his eyes glide past Lance.

“I don’t see anything. I think this is another test,” he says, resigned.

“But I can see everything clearly? Unless…"

Lance knocks the sturdy glass twice and looks up and around. His side goes up around the tower in a gentle spiral and in a constant slope, without stairs, and seemingly unobstructed until the end of it. But on Keith’s side there aren’t even stairs to climb, only the waterfalls and the absolute darkness he claims to be in.

He sees beyond their tower and realizes there are many other similar towers creating yet another open circle on the ground, right below the gazer at the top of the palace, which he can see closer than ever now. The goal, probably.

Lance has a bad feeling about this, confirmed when the duet of thunderous voices chants once again from the walls.

**_“Three times we prayed to the stars. In darkness, light. The night was long and my heart was sinking. My eyes, my fire, my guidance: show me the way to the sky.”_ **

“Oh, _quiznak_ ,” curses Lance, because he has quite an idea of what may be about to happen. He sticks his hands to the glass and talks to Keith again.

“Okay, so, good news or bad news. Which one do you want first.”

“Bad news,” answers Keith.

“Right, so, you’re not in an open space. You’re trapped in a tower surrounded by water and may be in need of fighting your way up in a minute, maybe less,” says Lance.

“... And the good one?” grumbles Keith.

“I’ll be following you from outside and maybe be in charge of guiding you in the dark,” he says. Then, trying not to sound as nervous as he feels, he adds, “Nostalgic, isn’t it?”

Once upon a time, in an Altean castle, two young boys were forced to exercise their teamwork by letting the other guide him through a maze while blindfolded. Although the first attempts were a disaster, in the end, the boys learned a valuable lesson of fellowship and trust. 

Who would have thought that someone could be even more eccentric than King Alfor with those bonding exercises? 

Hearing that, Keith snorts and seems to relax.

“I guess it is,” he says, his amused voice suggesting he’s recalling that episode at the castle too. “I just hope I don’t end up smashing my head against a wall this time.”

“Hmm, I’ll consider it. You consider doing some stretches, just in case,” says Lance.

“Reassuring.”

“Hey, it’s a fair warning. Don’t blame me later if you sprain something on the way.” 

Lance tries to keep his uplifting tone, but he can’t conceal entirely the worry in his voice. Noticing that, Keith turns around again. Although he can’t see Lance, he lifts his face and speaks to him with a soft expression. 

“Lance, it’s alright. I trust you.”

These words, said so casually, shake Lance to the core. Despite how far behind they have left those days of bickering and needing teamwork exercises, hearing this coming out from Keith’s mouth means to him as much as it would have to his younger self once. For a moment, he’s left speechless.

Keith, unaware of it, starts stretching his arms and legs as instructed, as he adds, “And even if we lose, it’s not that bad. To be honest, I’m starving. I wanna be done with this thing already and go down to eat.”

 _‘That's the guy I love, alright,’_ Lance realizes for the umpteenth time while he looks at Keith from behind that glass wall. He really has no way out of this— he can’t help but laugh at it as he swallows that pressure in his throat and scoffs, forcing himself back to the safe cover of his cocky attitude.

“No, no, no! What’s with that attitude? No giving up under my watch, Mullet, you better focus because if we lose it'll be entirely on you,” he threatens with a lovestruck smile on his face that his partner can’t see.

Keith laughs in response and Lance has to support himself on the glass to not faint before the killer combo of that sweet sound and the stretching session he’s witnessing.

“Fine. Lead the way, then, Ambassador McClain.”

A moment later, the walls vibrate with the sound of a whistle, and Lance sees the delicate waterfalls getting thicker and starting to fall in a strange sequence, as if someone was toying with their tap somewhere else. Below them, much like the buttons from the previous door, thick slabs of condensed material start sprouting from the wall, slowly forming the first few steps of a long staircase. 

Without losing any time, Lance starts instructing Keith.

“To your right, walk five steps and you’ll find the stairs,” he says and Keith complies, moving with caution but fast. “Stop, give one more step and turn around forty-five degrees to your left to start climbing. That’s it, that’s the first step, they are about two feet long, around one foot in between them, don’t get your boots stuck there… go, go, go!”

However, when Keith presses on the first step, another rumble can be heard from the top, and a new dense waterfall starts falling in the middle of the circle where he was standing before. Soon, the tower starts flooding. 

Because of course it would.

“I sure hope you know how to swim, Keith, these Brides aren’t playing around!” says Lance, scratching his face in frustration. 

For all answer, Keith scoffs and runs faster.

But after a while of running, they realize the true challenge of this test is more about patience and caution than the hazard of the flood itself. Once the initial panic is gone, it’s easy to notice that the water rises at a steady speed, the waterfalls that block the way pause and start again in fixed patterns, and the slabs keep building the way up at a slow and constant rhythm.

Hurrying up too much would do no good, so Lance tries to keep his head cool and instruct Keith accordingly, which isn’t hard at all— he hasn’t slipped even once, to his absolute delight. It’s hard to believe he truly doesn’t see anything.

“Say, is it really dark in there or are you just pulling my leg?” asks Lance around halfway while they wait for another waterfall to let them through.

“Yeah, it is. Why, am I nailing it?” Keith asks back, surprisingly cocky. Something in that uncharacteristic attitude burns Lance up.

“Well, obviously, since I’m the one guiding you,” he bluffs back, relieved that Keith can’t see his face getting heated. “And of course, I wouldn’t expect any less from the leader of the Blade of Marmora.”

“Right,” says Keith, smirking in the dark, “I suppose we trained the best skill for this.”

“Following orders?” asks Lance.

“Having good hearing,” answers Keith.

Lance’s smile falters a bit at that, but the waterfall stops at that moment and he hurries ahead to count the steps.

“...eight, nine, ten, eleven. Eleven steps before the next waterfall, this one falls in long intervals so don’t rush it.”

“Alright,” says Keith, moving forward in silence. When he finishes counting, he comments, “I wonder how many people are left.”

“Thirsty for victory, are we? I wonder the same, to be honest. This thing isn’t made for everyone, I think I’ll raise a complaint to the _Lirii_ afterwards,” says Lance, crossing his arms. “Too dangerous for senior citizens, disabled people, claustrophobic folks, and water-repelled species... Yet not a single warning before it? Where’s the protocol?”

Keith breathes out a laugh.

“Very diplomatic of you.”

“Of course,” Lance nods solemnly and then grins. “But also, that way I can bill them my suit. Which, I remark, was my favorite.”

Keith sighs and shakes his head, supporting himself on the wall to wait, but Lance can see through the glass that he’s actually smiling. Having this sudden chance to look at him from so close without being caught, Lance starts feeling a warm pressure in his stomach. After doubting for a moment, he gets closer to the glass and stares. 

Keith’s eyes are downcast, relaxed, and unfocused, so close Lance could even count his thick lashes. The clean lines of his nose and jaw are in plain view, giving him the fake illusion that he could touch them just by extending his hand. 

Lance’s fingers twitch, but just then the waterfall stops and Keith stands straight again, waiting for instructions. Lance curls his fingers into a fist and steps back, feeling his heart hammering against his ribs.

Dangerous. This game is getting too dangerous, and although he doesn’t wanna lose, he’d rather end it as soon as possible!

After that, they keep climbing the tower at a steady pace, and Lance soon notices the view of the top is getting clearer. 

“We’re almost there!” announces Lance happily, “I can see the top! If we keep this pace, I bet we’ll get there in no...” 

Before he can say “...time,” another rumbling sound comes from above and the waterfalls on the sides get thinner, meanwhile, the one in the middle grows thicker and thicker. The speed of the water rising increases and Lance suddenly wants to smash his forehead against the crystal wall.

Has this _quiznaking_ palace made an oath to literally rain on his parade every time he speaks?! 

“What was that?” asks Keith, whose ears catch on the movement around him.

“Change of plans, Samurai… How far do you think you can run without slipping?” says Lance, watching the water rise faster. “No more waiting, beat it! I’m right by your side!”

Hearing this, Keith curses under his breath and throws caution away, running up the stairs in the dark. Lance follows him like his shadow. The obstacles from before have stopped, making this another race against the clock— maybe the palace is hurrying them up again, like in the previous test. 

Noticing there’s no more water falling down the walls, Keith supports his hand with the bracelet on it as he runs, maybe to not lose his axis now that he’s speeding up. With his heart in his throat as he watches, Lance extends his own left hand to mirror him, wishing he could actually hold him through it.

They run neck and neck, breathing raggedly. Lance barely blinks, keeping an eye on Keith’s road. Right on time, he notices the slabs are different now— as if this needed to be any harder!

“Slow down, five more steps and there’s a change in the pattern! Same distance forward, different height!”

“Understood,” says Keith, slowing down to a full stop. Lance makes use of his privileged sight, quickly assessing the situation.

“Alright, they are twice as high now, can you make it? ...There we go!”

Keith successfully jumps the first step.

“Same height again, go!”

With the water roaring under their feet, Lance guides Keith carefully through the changes of the last steps. Loyal to his word, he trusts Lance blindly, making him feel his chest tight. The closer they are to the goal, the more impatient he is to finally be with Keith face to face again, without this stupid wall between them.

“You’re doing great!” Lance must admit he sounds more like a lovestruck fanboy than a coach, but what else can a man in love do before such an amazing display? “We’re almost there, ten more steps and you’re done. They’re all the same height! You’ve got this!”

Despite all the physical effort, Keith is grinning. Having a good notion of the distance already, he gets ready to jump the last steps in one impulse. 

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven—!

It had to be at that moment that Keith’s boot slides and ruins the fantastic momentum he built before. Lance can only open his mouth in horror when Keith falls forward and his hands cling to the slab he was supposed to land on. At the same time, the tips of his feet brush past the water quickly rising below him.

Both men realize, given the speed of the water, climbing back to the slab and trying to gain momentum again is a lost battle. Lance takes a hand to his forehead, frustrated, but then... Keith’s arms start moving.

And then Lance’s jaw slacks in shock.

Keith bends his knees almost to his chest and his hands slap the slab as he moves to the other side of it, back turned to the next one. He starts swinging back and forth, and after gaining enough momentum, as he swings back, he suddenly extends his legs to give himself enough impulse, lets go of his hands, turns in the air as he bends his knees again, and holds firmly to the eighth slab. He takes a deep breath and starts repeating the same sequence again, all of this in absolute darkness.

Before Lance’s wide-open eyes, Keith jumps from the eighth slab to the ninth, and finally, to the tenth. When he reaches it, with one last colossal effort, he spreads his legs to raise them and hook them over this last step as he pushes his body up, sitting on it. Noticing the tips of his hair got wet when he was upside down, he quickly stands up and jumps to the safety of the platform he reached, staggering and covering his eyes.

“There’s light up here,” he says, short of breath. He even has the nerve of taking a hand to his side and wincing, as if he was a normal half-human being and not some... ninja god or something divine like that.

Lance can’t answer immediately. He doesn’t know when, but he slid to the floor sometime while watching the show, falling flat on his ass. Waking up, he scrambles to stand up and also reaches the platform, discovering they are still separated by the annoying glass wall.

“So, uh, you can see now? Do you see me?” asks Lance, trying to hide his red face.

Keith turns to him, squinting adorably. 

“No. But I suppose this is the door?”

Lance sighs in relief and takes a shaky hand to his forehead. Then he turns his eyes to the side and sees that, indeed, there’s another carved arch in the wall with a crystal sphere on top. However, this time it’s a bit different— the glass wall cuts the arch into two, one half on his side, and the other on Keith’s side.

“Maybe we have to touch it at the same time,” suggests Keith. He waits for a moment and then frowns. “Uh, Lance?”

“Ah! Yes! I, uh— Let’s just do it.”

He walks to the arch and breathes in and out to control himself.

“Okay,” he says. “On the count of three. One, two... three!”

As soon as Lance touches his side of the arch, it sends a fiery red wave of light up to the sphere, where it crashes with another blue one before turning it the same shade of purple they saw before. At that moment, the arch opens up showing two parallel tunnels that lead somewhere beyond the tower.

Lance, however, is stuck staring at that purple sphere, frowning and feeling a strange boiling sensation all over his chest. In his brain, something seems to slowly lighten up as he remembers fragments of some things they’ve seen and heard since they entered the palace.

“Lance… Are you sure everything is alright?” asks Keith after a while, probably puzzled by his uncharacteristic silence.

“Yeah! Yeah, it’s just that… Haha, well…” Lance comes back to his senses. Aware that he’s behaving strangely, he tries to joke his way out as usual. “I’m still a bit shocked, you see. Not every day you get to witness an intergalactic Olympic champion in action, hahaha!”

“...You mean me?” asks Keith.

“Who else?” sneers Lance. “Are you telling me you don’t realize what you did back there was just… Man, that was—”

“Very sexy of me?”

Abrupt silence. 

Lance blinks, stunned. Right, _of course_ he heard that!

As his face heats up, his brain in alert offers about three ways to snap back and evade, but then he looks at the purple sphere again and, instead of answering, his heart agitates as he starts measuring another possibility.

Keith, however, interprets his prolonged silence as a sign that he probably crossed some line, taking a fist to his mouth and looking away.

“Sorry, that was— just a bad joke, forget it,” he says softly.

Making use of the advantage given by their current position, Lance stares intensely at Keith without him noticing. The dichotomy of the hero who just climbed a flooding tower and makes snarky jokes versus the awkward man disheveled and embarrassed before him is something Lance had trouble understanding for years, but once he did, he could never look away again.

Remembering that, Ambassador Lance McClain decides it’s time to make a risky bet.

“No, no, it’s fine,” he says. Keith raises his head looking relieved, but not for long. Smirking despite his nerves, Lance adds in a casual voice, “It was, in fact, very sexy of you, yes. And, to be honest... that’s a recurrent thought of mine.”

If he wasn’t so tense he’d enjoy more seeing the effect of his own words. It’s Keith’s turn now to be rendered speechless. His mouth parts slightly, and while flustered, he scrunches his eyebrows as if he wasn’t sure if he heard correctly. Lance’s stomach is tight, but he still punches out a laugh.

“What? I said I was being honest! Now, on the same topic of honesty... I’ve been meaning to ask you a question too.”

He turns to the wall separating them and stands in front of Keith. Raising a shaky hand to touch it, he asks in a soft tone:

“Why is blue your favorite color?”

Of course, such an innocent question has infinite possible answers. _‘I like the sea!’_ , _‘it’s a peaceful color!’_ , _‘my grandma’s hydrangeas were blue!’_ , or whatever— No one would normally take such a question so seriously. 

And yet... When asked, Keith turns his eyes away and says nothing in response. 

It’s that silence, however, what untightens the knot in Lance’s stomach, freeing a bunch of butterflies inside it instead.

The same sound of whistles they heard before suddenly comes reverberating through the tunnels ahead of them, almost like a call. Lance steps away from the wall, still lightheaded.

“Should we keep going?” he asks, trying to keep his voice steady.

“Yeah,” says Keith, and they start moving again. Lance throws one last glance at Keith before a new wall separates them, but he doesn’t get to see his expression before he disappears from his sight. 

For a while, Lance only hears his own shallow breathing as he walks through this new corridor in a straight line, immersed in his own thoughts. But then, the sound of an incoming call in his comm startles him. With his heart throbbing, he taps it to answer.

“...Keith?”

“Your question,” says Keith. His voice feels a bit strained, despite the echo of his steps in the background sounding very slow. Lance slows down too, waiting. 

Then, after a pause, Keith says, “When I was in the Quantum Abyss, I realized… the things I missed the most, they were all blue.”

Lance stops walking entirely. His lips twitch as he smiles to the floor feeling a strong emotion overcoming him.

Here’s the thing: from what he understands, aside from being a very cursed water park, this palace is supposed to be good at knowing what’s inside people’s hearts. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be chanting weird stuff like "show me the true colors of your heart", or weeding out the participants with violent water jets to make way for those who are ‘predestined’ to win together, right? 

Considering this, lying to it or making a mistake must mean getting the boot— Yet, when they were asked to pick two colors at the first door, although they chose almost randomly, they were still given a pass. 

That first door may have been a fluke, but now that they have opened the second one, Lance has started suspecting the colors aren't supposed to be a choice, but more of an admission. Because, if the Brides can really see through them and that last door was meant to show the true color of _his_ heart... then it sure did, because it could only be red.

Red, like the light inside the cockpit of the Lion that comforted him in the solitude of space, the link that gave him strength in Keith’s absence, and peace when they were drifting back to Earth for months. The color of the bayard that saved his life many times and the silhouette he could see in the Astral Plane whenever they formed Voltron’s wings…

He loves many things in this life: his friends, his job, the sea, and the stars, but in the end, the one who painted his heart in his own colors is that guy talking to him through the comm, who came to this place giving unreasonable excuses.

So, if he's right and Keith says his color is blue… Is he wrong for getting his hopes up? For believing that, maybe, _just_ maybe...

“I see,” says Lance softly, as he starts walking again. “In that case, I have one more question.”

Keith seems to hold his breath.

Actually, there are hundreds of questions he’d like to ask, but at that moment, Lance’s soft smile turns into a mischievous grin. He accelerates his pace and, as he sees the end of the tunnel, with his chest fluttering, he asks:

“Am I devastatingly handsome, Leader Kogane?”

Keith laughs breathlessly in his ear, the sound endearing and honest. Lance is sure he's about to get the answer he was owed... 

But, much like before, the floor picks that exact moment to open beneath Lance's feet this time, forcing him down a short slide in a very undignified pose, to end up landing hard on stony ground.

It's doing it on purpose! This wicked palace is totally doing it on purpose, it couldn't be otherwise! Who knows, maybe if _he_ was a sentient palace and a bunch of love birds visited him only every thirty years to stargaze, he’d also make his personal mission to bully and cockblock as many people as he could during that, is what Lance thinks with resentment as he groans, trying to stand up.

“Lance?!”

Keith’s voice sounds worried in his ear and also nearby. Still seeing stars, Lance looks around and realizes he has landed on a small circular space, completely surrounded by a pristine waterfall that flows directly from the spherical structure on top of the palace, currently a few stories away. Standing inside the circle, there’s already another person waiting.

“Heeey, look what the cat dragged in!” chirps Ezor, squatting in front of Lance and poking his forehead with a finger.

“Haha, figures!” says Zethrid’s voice farther away. Lance glances past Ezor and notices: all around the circle and behind the transparent waterfall, there are many square structures simulating grandstands, completely empty save for Zethrid, who is staring from afar with her arms crossed, and Keith, who is running down to the edge of the waterfall.

“Lance, are you alright?” he asks from his side.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine! This stupid… cursed—”

“Ah-ah, don’t disrespect the Queens, do you wanna win or not?” says Ezor.

“Ugh.”

Lance stands up, straightens his battered clothes, and stares around one more time.

“So… this is it? It’s only us?” he asks.

“Yeah, it seems so!” answers Ezor merrily.

“It was to be expected, all the rest were just a bunch of diplomatic milk drinkers and such,” sneers Zethrid, very self-satisfied.

Lance, diplomatic milk drinkers’ sole representative, frowns deeply.

“Not to be rude, but where did you guys get your invitations from?” he asks.

“Bullied Lotor into giving his to us,” says Zethrid, quite matter-of-factly.

“Right…” Lance has trouble picturing that, so he just desists. “And the other one?”

Ezor puts her hands behind her head and turns towards Keith with a huge grin.

“Stole it from the boss!”

“WHAT?!” yells Lance.

“What? I received one too?” asks Keith at the same time, dumbfounded.

“Well, it came on your mail but since you never look at it, we took the liberty of freeing you from that burden,” Ezor shrugs. “But then Admiral Shirogane gave you his invitation, so here we are! Funny, huh?”

“Not funny! Not funny AT ALL!” says Lance, extremely pissed off… mainly because the _Lirii_ didn’t bother sending _him_ an invitation, despite knowing each other. That official complaint gets thicker and thicker!

He also makes a mental note to never send anything private to Keith through correspondence, and another one to give him a good earful about the adequate surveillance of his subordinates' actions.

As he’s thinking that, finally, the duet of ominous voices comes to life again to recite the third passage of their chant.

**_“Three times we prayed to the stars. In weakness, strength. Kingdoms fell and chains tightened around us. My love, my life, my soulmate: show me your will to fight back.”_ **

The hard ground on Lance and Ezor’s side sinks on its edges and the gap gets filled to the brim by the waterfall, forming a deep circular pit around them that leaves them a very reduced space to move. 

Everyone present realizes: that is a ring. And the way to win this trial is, most certainly, to throw the opponent into the deep pit.

“Uhh, very literal! I like it,” says Ezor.

“Bah. Then are we supposed to just stand here and watch?” asks Zethrid, looking at the quiet stands on their side with disgust.

“Oh, don’t worry baby, you’ve done enough. I’ve got this in the bag!” answers Ezor, waving at her happily.

“Hey, I’m right here,” grumbles Lance.

“But not for long~” sings Ezor, pissing him off.

With a scoff, Lance cracks his neck and gives a cautious step back. He just intended to throw a quick look at Keith for inspiration, but seeing his worried face behind the waterfall, he can’t help but ease his frown and smile instead.

“Hey, Samurai. Relax. Just trust me like you trusted me back there, alright?” he says, loud and clear.

Keith doesn’t seem entirely convinced, but in the end, he sighs and shows a tiny smile.

“Alright. Just… don’t overdo it.”

“When have I ever?”

Keith scoffs, not ill-intended, and Lance concentrates on what's ahead of him. Thinking that Keith will be watching and remembering their pending conversation, he gets motivated to fight despite his inevitable anxiety. 

It’s been a while since he has fought anyone outside the Atlas crew’s training, but at least this is an opponent he knows, and whose physique is similar to his own, making it a fair fight.

Or so he thought.

The same raucous whistle they heard before resounds again and before it even stops echoing, Ezor is already charging his way, trying to ram him fast and clean into the pool. Lance’s good reflexes allow him to dodge, trying to use his shoulders to counter-attack, however, Ezor makes use of her superior agility to jump over him and kick him from behind.

Lance stumbles a few steps forward but nails his heels on the ground to gain stability. Even without turning back, he can sense Ezor coming for a low blow; in a second, he crouches and extends his leg to make her trip. The Galra woman makes a full stop and jumps backwards, smirking.

“Not too shabby!” she compliments, but then hurries to attack again, this time from the flanks. Lance shields from the push with his arms and puts all his weight on his legs to counter her strength. 

That works… Until Ezor, with a killer glint in her eyes, makes use of the extensible tail on her head like a whip to sweep under Lance’s feet, making him trip. While on the ground, she tries to push him into the pool with a kick Lance barely avoids, landing on the edge.

“Hey! That’s cheating!” he complains.

“It doesn’t say anywhere that we have to fight with our fists, does it?” she answers with a mocking grin. As if to prove her point, she uses her chameleon abilities to meld against the background, whipping him again when he tries to stand up.

"Shit," mumbles Lance, trying to see her silhouette moving around. 

Knowing that standing by the edge will make it easier to push him, and guessing she’ll surround him to kick him into the pool, Lance stays down on the ground and is forced to improvise.

Quickly, he unties his jacket from his waist, throws it back to drench it on the pool, and twists it, his eyes jumping left and right, left and right, as he decides where to put his only bet. Then, focusing all his strength in a big swing, he whips the jacket in a semicircle around him from left to right and, bingo! He hits something solid coming at him— although it’s not enough to even make Ezor yelp, it’s enough for her to lose her balance and appear again, furious.

No more stealth: she raises her leg to kick him down and back, and Lance dodges rolling to the side, but when he’s standing up her whip comes around him, pushes him back to her, and she grabs him with her hands instead. With inordinate force, she twists his arm to put it behind his back, making it crack in a very unpleasant way. He grunts and trashes, but she uses one hand to secure the right arm behind him and the other to hold him around his neck, kicking his feet from behind to make him walk towards the pool. 

"Are you that desperate to win this?!" yells Lance, struggling to release himself from her choking hold, his heels scratching the floor as he tries to resist the pushing. 

"Sorry Lance, nothing personal,” says Ezor with a grin, although the effort to push Lance into the pool is making her pant under her breath. She tries to change the position without success, as she adds, “But my babe and I have been through a lot… We deserve this. So, be good and give up already!"

However you look at it, taking this fight so seriously is absurd. It’s just the last stage of an alien contest, and the prize is just some weird ritual no one understands— and even if it wasn’t, it’s true that Zethrid and Ezor are a couple, and probably deserve to win way more than Lance and Keith, who are just a couple of idiots dancing around each other like fools.

But when Lance feels Keith’s worried eyes on him, he simply can’t let it go. He can’t be weak when this is about the two of them and they’re depending on him, even if it’s a stupid alien game. He wants to impress Keith and he also _wants_ Keith so, without even thinking, he shouts:

"Well, _my_ babe is right there watching me so I'm not! Losing! Like this!!"

From his left wrist, one of the two thin luxite bands he wears all the time transforms into a replica of his old Altean sword, the red bayard's one. 

Of course, he's not slashing anyone over a dumb contest, but he isn't gonna be unarmed when the other side already cheated— with the hilt of the sword, he hits right under Ezor’s chin, stunning her and making her loose her hold. Taking the chance, in absolute berserk mode, he grabs her arm and lifts her in a brutal judo hold— courtesy of Shiro’s awful, terrible, painful spartan exercises— and throws her in the direction of the pool. It's only due to Ezor’s extraordinary agility that she manages to land right on the edge holding by her very nails and toes, however, it's clear that one more push is all it’ll take for her to fall.

And then two things happen in a flash, confusing both opponents.

On the other side of the waterfall, Keith’s senses blare as he feels a shadow dashing towards him from behind in an attempt to ram him against the waterfall. Apparently, acknowledging that Ezor would lose, Zethrid considered that being the last ones left would suffice to win, and as a last resource, she simply decided to push her own boss into the water.

But Keith’s reflexes are better than the average man— following Lance’s strategy, in that split second he understands that down is safer, so he bends his knees and rolls to the side as nimble as a cat, with his subordinate landing so heavily where he was standing that she cracks the rock stand. 

And before anyone can do or say anything else, three violent water jets coming from different directions drench Zethrid, who is unable to dodge them and only lets out a furious growl. At the same time, a circular hole opens on the ground and a spiral staircase starts forming on each side of the waterfall. 

Lance, fearing that Ezor will pick him by his lapels and drown him in vengeance, gives two steps to the side breathing raggedly, but his opponent has lost all interest in him, crying out with fury.

“BABE! Why did you do that?! Why didn’t you trust me?!” 

“I, ugh, I thought it’d be better this way!” answers Zethrid, spitting water as she watches her bracelet melt from her arm. Lowering her ears, she mumbles, “I’m sorry, love. I couldn’t help it.”

Ezor clicks her tongue, but her fury seems to cool down. She turns towards Lance and slaps his arm, making him jolt.

“Whatever! At least make it worth it, alright? I really can’t stand you two idiots.”

With that, she sticks her tongue towards Keith with resentment and signals Zethrid to follow her, jumping down the holes that have just appeared. Zethrid slaps Keith’s back on the way out— be it as an apology or just a petty goodbye, it’s not clear. 

What is clear, however, is that Lance and Keith are the only ones left and that the silence is getting heavier the more it extends. Clearing his throat, Lance tries to lighten the atmosphere.

“Well, that was exhilarating! As in, this is gonna hurt like hell for a couple of days, that’s for sure…”

“Lance,” says Keith, ignoring his rambling. He surrounds the waterfall separating them, apparently waiting for Lance to look at him. But Lance doesn’t; instead, he just puts away his Altean sword and rearranges whatever is left of his ragged clothes. Keith stops and then gives half a step forward as if he just wanted to cross the wall.

“Lance,” he repeats, this time louder. He presses his lips and clenches his fists, before asking softly, “Did I hear you call me…?”

 _Yes, you did_. Lance breathes shallowly, feeling exposed. Although he wanted nothing more than to face Keith and talk to him, now that he can, he suddenly starts questioning all his previous conclusions and, in panic, feels like calling it quits. But there’s nowhere to run here, and besides… haven’t they won this thing already, anyway? 

So, even if he misunderstood Keith on the way up, even if he raised his hopes in vain, at least he will complete the mission he was given when he came: to end the long, silent pining or don’t bother coming back. That way, even if his heart gets shattered, at least he’ll have a _Sarii_ winner title and a place to go back to hide.

Still, he’s unable to give a straight answer, laughing nervously instead.

“Ah, haha, wait, wait! First, did you like my moves? I was fighting for your honor after all, so...”

“Yes,” Keith hurries to say, oddly breathless. His cheeks turn pink, as he mumbles, “The moves, the sword, it was— yeah.”

“I knew you had a thing for swords,” laughs Lance, this time sincerely, feeling his chest tight. 

But then, his entire world seems to turn upside down.

“Not the sword. I have a thing for you.”

Lance raises his eyes to stare at Keith, unable to conceal his hopeful expression. He finally walks to the very edge of the pool, standing face to face with the guy who unknowingly owns his heart.

“You really do?” he asks, almost whimpering. It’s very pathetic, but at least it gets the message through. Keith exhales two short laughs as if he just received the best news of his life.

“Yeah. Always have. Since the castle, even. I just thought you’d never...”

“Never what?”

Keith lowers his eyes gently.

“Never think of me the way I think of you.”

Lance can’t help but pull his own hair, wishing he could kick his younger self right on the spine.

“Oh, you gotta be kidding me! How old are we again...?!”

“I don’t care,” Keith says. He looks about one more provocation away from crossing the waterfall. “I don’t care, as long as you feel the same. Do you?”

 _‘Are you blind, man?!’_ is what Lance wants to scream, but he has no right to do so, considering he didn’t see through Keith’s heart for years, losing so much precious time dancing around each other in the dark.

So many things are suddenly clear: the encouraging words, the tight hug when the Lions left, the stink eye Keith gave Abelas sometimes. Their many meetings, the fact that Keith came by his own will to this absurd competition, the intensity of his eyes when they were sealing the bracelets...

Actually, the real question is ‘ _am I blind?!’_

“I do! For years too, I—” Lance almost falls into the pool but steps back right on time. He growls. “Stupid water! Look, let’s meet at the top. We won something, didn’t we? I can’t stand talking to you like this. I wanna be face to face, I have a lot to say!”

Keith shows the brightest smile ever, making Lance swoon. He looks at the twin spiral staircases that appeared on each side.

“Fine. Then I’ll race you to the top,” announces Keith, walking backward as if he grew wings on his feet, and then turning to the stairs.

“What?! Wait, not fair, I just had a fight— Keith!”

Lance yells and complains but he’s already running, climbing the stairs that lead to the spherical last floor while watching Keith doing the same. 

He said he wouldn’t do this again and is aching everywhere, but somehow, each step is making him feel lighter and lighter. He runs at the rhythm of Keith’s words repeating in his head, as his memories resurface and flood his mind completing a puzzle that should have been solved years ago.

Dumb boys crashing their lions on sand, trying to outfly each other; a hand on his shoulder, a painful goodbye and then a reencounter, making his legs tremble before Keith’s growth spurt; a sunset shared before a life-changing trip, enjoying one last moment of peace together among smiles and reassuring words that always puzzled him yet gave him so much courage to fight; that arm that supported him when his tears fell as the Lions departed, that gentle hand that helped him out of bed one bad night at the farm…

 _“_ Holy shit,” he mumbles as if to convince himself, out of breath, “He’s always liked me!”

He starts laughing, making it even harder to climb up, but he still doesn’t stop until the eternal set of stairs finally ends in a square platform with a single carved arch on a transparent wall. With a smile, he reaches for it and to his surprise, his touch melts it. Raising his eyes, he catches Keith under an identical open arch on the opposite side. 

**_“Three times we prayed to the stars. In war, peace.”_ **

The two voices chant again, but this time their voices aren’t augmented. The _Sarii_ Brides are singing for them their epic love story, soft and distinct.

**_“In darkness, light.”_ **

Lance gives one step inside the round dome. It’s a huge crystal sphere parted in the middle by a layer of crystal that serves as the solid floor they’re walking on, letting see through it a quiet pool of water underneath. 

**_“In weakness, strength.”_ **

The planets are perfectly aligned above them and they have the most privileged view, but Lance can’t be bothered to look up right now, his eyes glued to the front. He gives one step inside, then another. The crystal floor echoes. 

He hurries. Keith mirrors him, his hair swaying wildly behind him.

**_“Three times we prayed, and three times were we blessed.”_ **

They are running. The dome is bigger than it appeared from anywhere below, but their legs are fast and they are about to catch up to each other. It’s what Lance has always wanted; catching up to Keith, not because he’s faster, but because Keith is waiting for him to do so, looking his way— looking nowhere else. He can’t help but laugh, spreading his arms.

**_“May the Three in the sky bless you for three more lives.”_ **

The chant ends and this magical moment makes Lance feel like he is suddenly floating above the ground, even losing his footing...

Until he realizes: it’s not the magic of the moment, but the fact that the ground has literally just disappeared under his feet.

In a split second, Lance and Keith cross a terrified look as both fall like rocks directly into the pool that has opened under their feet, and there's nothing they can do to avoid it. When Lance's head breaks the surface of the water, the first thing he does is yell a very human curse before complaining loudly.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS! What are the _Lirii_ thinking?! This is a scam, a scam I tell ya!"

"Lance…" Keith is swimming closer, but Lance can't stop complaining.

"All that climbing and fighting to be bamboozled at the end? Disgusting! I'm raising an official complaint, watch me!"

"Lance!" says Keith again, as if he was about to burst.

Lance stops his tantrum, but although his heart is also on fire, he still pouts and spreads his arms to say one more thing. However, Keith gets ahead of him, putting a hand on his face with a smile.

"I know. That was your favorite suit."

It’s the way Keith’s soft voice and touch feel his and only his what truly illuminates Lance’s face, and not the water of this pool turning a shade of purple sprinkled with golden glittering dots, running all the way down the walls of the palace. 

They hear the faint echoes of cheers from the ground floor, and they presume the view must be spectacular: the entire palace and its waterfalls shining in the color they created, with the planets aligned above them and the entire universe as a witness of their victory, and yet, Lance couldn’t care less about those details. 

The only thing he cares about is the way Keith’s body feels when he throws his arms around his neck and hugs him as tight as he can as they float in the pool, and the way Keith’s hands seem to cover his entire back as he buries his face on the crook of his neck, achingly sweet. Their bracelets dissolve, having served their purpose, but the magic seems to stay within them.

“Hey, babe,” mutters Lance into Keith’s ear. “Did you know? My favorite color is red.”

Keith stares right into Lance’s eyes with enough intensity to make him shiver. Then he lets out the sweetest laugh, and without any warning, he pulls him towards himself and presses their lips together, slow and carefully.

Lance must admit, the many — _many_ — times he imagined this moment, he always thought Keith would kiss as fiercely as he fights, so his soft touch comes as a surprise. And yet, that gentlemanly restraint is doing nothing but burn him up, because behind it, there’s an evident promise of _more_ — he tests it by teasing him with a little bite, and Keith responds by deepening the kiss and tightening his hold so much Lance believes he may just melt against his chest right into the pool.

He must also admit, not even in his wildest dreams things would have turned as crazy as they did, but aside from the general ache on his poor body… he totally prefers this version of the story!

When they separate enough to breathe, Lance gently sweeps Keith’s wet hair away from his face and makes him look up to the planets above.

“What do you think? Are we getting a prize?” he asks.

“I got what I wanted,” answers Keith, quickly losing interest in the sky and snuggling against his neck again. Lance laughs, feeling sparks all over. Still, among his daze, he has enough sense left to worry about a _tiny_ detail.

“So cheesy! Aren’t you afraid this whole mumbo jumbo will tie you to me forever, soulmate?”

At this, Keith stares at him for a while and then gives him that toothy grin Lance will never have enough of.

“Fine by me. We’ve got a lot to catch up on, anyway.”

... Goddammit, Lance is definitely gonna be taken for the next three lives. But, at this moment, he doesn’t have any objections at all— he’s so happy kissing Keith again, that he may even consider sparing the _Lirii_ from his official complaint.

* * *

The banquet is as bountiful as promised.

After Keith and Lance are awarded by the very excited venerable _Lirii_ with replicas of their lost bracelets, they guarantee they are meant to achieve many more deeds in their long and prosperous lives together— yes, _lives,_ as in plural. At this, Lance throws a nervous glance at Keith, who has the nerve to wink at him. He _winks_!

Who can fear the big mysteries of fate and rebirth under these circumstances?

At the table, although Lance has to deal with Abelas’ irritating scold about his sorry and disgraceful state, he has the satisfaction of asking him to please notify Allura that her dirty trick actually worked and she can expect him to take some time off soon to enjoy his quite deserved honeymoon, or whatever came after being bonded for life — _lives_ — through an alien ritual. His advisor has no other option but to massage his own temples and eat in silence after that.

However, that reminds Lance… didn't he have another mission to complete?

“Psst. Hey, babe. I forgot to ask you the most important question of all,” he says, tilting his head to the side.

Keith looks at him, playfully raising an eyebrow.

“Which is?”

“Do you wanna go to Shiro’s wedding with me?”

Keith stares at Lance with unfathomable eyes for a long time. Then, instead of indulging him with a redundant answer, he simply takes with his left hand Lance’s right, raises it to his lips, prints a kiss on his knuckles and, without letting go, picks with his other hand his fork again and keeps eating.

Smiling to his plate, Lance thinks that, despite her tricks, Allura may have been right.

Fate does, indeed, work in mysterious ways.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> If you know me you know I love angst, but lately I've been missing those good s2 vibes, you know? And since I love post-canon and the prompts Dolly gave me (ily!) I thought, why not make something a bit more lighthearted? So I hope it gave you a good time :D I don't think I'll ever be able to write a normal soulmates AU though, I suppose this one counts as pre-soulmates? Soulmates: The Origin, haha. And yes the Brides are sapphic warrior queens so thank you to them for helping our silly boys here lol
> 
> Comments, kudos, and recs appreciated in case you enjoyed it! I still have a [VLD Tumblr](https://silverineontherun.tumblr.com) in case you wanna scream at me too. Thank you very much for reading, see ya next time!


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